Bulletin n. 3/2008 | ||
February 2009 | ||
Pichler Florian |
||
European Identities from Below: Meanings of Identification with Europe | ||
in Perspectives on European Politics and Society , vol. 9, n. 4, December , 2008 , 411-430 | ||
Abstract More often than not, European identity is portrayed as one coherent identity for people across the whole continent. However, why should European identity not vary across countries? In this paper, we examine contents and structures of European identities in nine very different European countries. We draw on theoretical and normative approaches and differentiate between a political and a cultural component. In contrast to other studies, we consider national variation in the determination of the contents of both dimensions. Our findings suggest that European identities vary considerably across the continent. Certainly, there is no single picture of a European identity. A two-fold distinction between political and cultural elements prevails in some countries, whereas in other countries political and more pragmatic issues dominate the people's ideas about what it means to be European. Finally, we discuss some of the implications of these findings for policy makers at both the national and European level. | ||